First Matawan Turkey Trot a great success

Even before Robert Cavanaugh crossed the finish line in 16:34 to be the inaugural winner of the Matawan Borough 5k Turkey Trot Nov. 25, this event was a tremendous success. In my eyes, the success of this race is not solely based on the over 200 registered runners and walkers who participated, but on the overwhelming support of the local businesses, residents and surrounding communities. In addition, the planning and organization of the race committee, the coordination of the Matawan and Cliffwood fire departments to hang our donated sign from Compact Auto Body, and the dozens of volunteers who showed up to help make this event something we can all be proud of, were indispensable.

I am writing this letter to thank you all for the generous contributions and efforts put forth which made this event a success. I want to thank our gold sponsors: Bayshore Community Hospital and Maser Consulting for their generous financial sponsorships, as well as Compact Auto Body's willingness to donate our event signage. These sponsors along with our silver and bronze sponsorships - which consisted of many local Matawan/Aberdeen merchants - made the vision of this race a reality.

I was besieged by the generosity of our many sponsors; however I am speechless when it comes to the volunteer power that was present on the morning of the race. In the popular baseball movie "Field of Dreams," Kevin Costner's character heard the voice saying "build it and they will come" - this is what happened on the morning of Nov. 25. We organized the race, but the event could not have functioned without the support of the volunteers who came and orchestrated the day's events. Our volunteers included the likes of Boy Scouts from Troop 66, Matawan Little League players and coaches, local businessmen, and of course our faithful residents. I thank you all!

Each year the funds raised from the annual turkey trot will go toward improving or revitalizing one of our parks within Matawan. This year's turkey trot raised over $6,000, all of which will be directly used toward the refurbishment of the Jackson Street Park. On behalf of the Recreation Commission of Matawan, I once again want to thank all of our sponsors, runners and volunteers who made this event possible. See you all again next year!

Michael J. Mullaney

Matawan Turkey Trot race Director